The Gnumeric Manual
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# 14.13. Sampling Tool

Figure 14-46. Sampling Tool Dialog

Use the sampling tool to take a sample of a data set. This tool can take both a random sample of a given size or a periodic sample:

random sample

  A random sample is a subset of the population such that every subset of that size has the same chance of being picked.

periodic sample

  In a periodic sample every kth element in the population is selected.

To use this tool, first specify the data set or data sets by setting the "Input Range:" entry. The range or ranges given can be grouped into datasets by rows, by columns, or by areas.

If the first entry in each data set contains a variable, select the "Labels" option.

Select the sampling method which can be either periodic or random.

random sample

  Specify the size of the random sample in the "Size of Sample:" entry.

periodic sample

  Specify the period in the "Period:" entry.

Specify the number of samples you would like to obtain in the " Number of Samples:" entry.

| Since the period uniquely determines a periodic sample, if you specify that you would like 2 samples you will be given the identical sample twice.

| If the dataset for a periodic sample is a two dimensional range, Gnumeric will enumerate the data points by row first.

Figure 14-47. Some Example Data for the Sampling Tool

Example 14-13. Using the Sampling Tool

Figure 14-47 shows some example data and Figure 14-48 the corresponding output.

Figure 14-48. Sampling Tool Output

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